The Razor's Edge
by Caleb
Summary: The tale of Final Fantasy Seven as told by Zack. There may be mistakes in the telling, since Zack is old.
1. The Razor's Edge-Chaper One

CHAPTER ONE

Author's note:

The dates of certain events in this story contradict those in the game.For my sake, please pretend as if they happened at these times.

CHAPTER ONE

I've read in the _Midgar Times _about how Cloud Strife and his friends saved the world. However, not many people know the story of what actually happened.Sorry, let me amend that, everyone knows about how Sephiroth summoned Meteor, and Aeris Gainsborough summoned Holy to counter Meteor.I've also noticed that almost everything from the day Cloud left Midgar with AVALANCHE is common knowledge.However, all that is just the end of the story; perhaps you would like to hear the beginning?Okay, here it goes.

It all began about twenty years ago now…

The rain poured down in sheets, I'm not sure if you have ever experienced rain like that.I mean rain where the drops are so big that they hurt your head when they hit you.Anything outside for more than a second was soaked.Normally in Gongaga we just shut everything up when we see a storm coming, but this day was special.One madman of a horseman came through town on the road, and then several more until an entire cavalry brigade had passed.I, just a young boy, only about eight or so; I don't really remember my age at the time, and it really doesn't matter to my story. 

After the horsemen had passed, several brigades of foot troops marched by on the quagmire of a road, their wet weather gear doing hardly anything to keep out the vicious, insidious rain.In the very rear of the column was a general of some sort, surrounded by his bodyguards and officers.

Normally I wouldn't have paid him any mind; after all, a war was going on…there were soldiers marching through at least every couple of weeks.I never paid any attention to the generals.However, this man, this warrior, caught my attention.What got to me were his bright green eyes, blazing in the rain; then his entire demeanor got to me.The way he sat in his saddle, high and proud, his long silver hair, which I had never seen on anyone before, and his long, deadly sword were all registered in my memory forever.This was a man to look up to; he was a true leader of men.

I'm not sure what got into me then, but I decided at that moment to do something completely unprecedented: disregarding the rain, I darted from the shelter of my porch out into the road and confronted the man in the black cloak.

"Can I help you?" I remember him saying calmly after calling the column to a halt. 

"How is it that you are such a strong leader?"I replied, meekly.

I remember him chuckling, perhaps at my arrogance or perhaps just at the absurdity of the situation.I'll never know.However he soon answered my question."I am a member of Shinra's elite corps, SOLDIER."

"Can I join SOLDIER?" I asked.

"Tell you what," he said as he smiled down at me."When you turn sixteen, you'll be old enough to join.When you are old enough, come to Midgar and ask for me."

"Okay," I said.Then, as he started to ride off, I realized that I didn't know his name."Sir!" I called out.He turned around."What's your name?"I asked.

"My name is Sephiroth!" he called back.Then he and his army disappeared into the drenching rain.I ran inside to get away from the bruising water.

"Sephiroth," I said to myself."I know I'll be hearing that name again."

Little did I know how right I was.

Now, you're probably comparing my story to everything you've ever heard about Sephiroth.A good leader?Hardly, you say.Kind?Not the one I know, you think to yourself.However, you have no idea of who he was.I guess that's the point of my story; to show everyone that evil must come from good.Evil cannot just be created.This is a story of how Sephiroth declined from the great man in the rain to the miserable creature that Cloud destroyed in the Northern Crater.This is also the story of how Cloud came to stand against Sephiroth and the part I played in the entire situation.

As time moved forward, the war dragged on.News of the war was heard every day; this or other battle won, this or other battle lost.Eventually, the people of Gongaga lost interest in the war; they had something new to talk about.

About a year after Sephiroth passed through town, Shinra sold us a Mako Reactor, and the thing was built on the outskirts of town.Soon everything was powered by Mako, and the reactor was all that everyone talked about.I didn't pay attention to that; I had a hero to worship, so I kept constant attention on the war.I am probably one of the few people still alive who can give you a rundown of every battle fought in the war.

About five years after Sephiroth and his army came through Gongaga, the war ended.There had been a final and cataclysmic victory at Wutai.Basically, Shinra had the advantage in both numbers and materia.Most importantly, to me at least, the Shinra army had Sephiroth as its commander.With such a leader, there was no way they could have lost.People at town began discussing what would happen now that the war was over.The two nations who had fought it were gone; the only organization still on its feet was Shinra Incorporated.That, friends, is how Shinra came to rule the world.

Many people do not realize how crucial the Wutai war was.First of all, it gave Sephiroth field experience so that he would be that much stronger.Second, it allowed Shinra to begin putting Mako reactors everywhere, so the Nibelheim project could go into effect; I'll come to the significance of this detail later.Finally, it provided Shinra with the power it would use to try to suppress those fighting Sephiroth.

I find it rather ironic that the one thing in town that I had hardly acknowledged was the one thing that created in me a deep hatred of Shinra.The accident happened on a Saturday.I remember that it was sunny and bright; it was almost a complete contrast to the monsoon of Sephiroth's visit.The only thing these two dates had in common was the fact that an army was marching through town.However, since this army was not in a rush to get to the front, and since it was a Saturday, they decided to rest for a day.The power needed to supply these soldiers with their electricity needs was immense.

In fact, it was too immense for the reactor to take.

That evening, after most of the townspeople had gone to bed, a drunken soldier went to his room after a long night at the bar, and he turned on the light.That was all it took.A simple flicking of a switch.With that seemingly insignificant switch, this soldier had inadvertently overtaxed the reactor, and it blew up.Half the town was incinerated, and the rest was on fire.With a simple flick of a switch, Gongaga was crushed.

It is for this reason that I hate the Shinra.Not for all their other wrongdoings, I helped in a few of those.No, it is because they did not even care about the people whom they were sucking dry that I despise them.They were too uncaring to maintain and upgrade our reactor.It is ridiculous that we were left with a prototype reactor without a single bit of maintenance!They were also too uncaring to control their soldiers, or to think about the consequences of quartering that many people in such a small town.Finally, they were too uncaring to provide us with help rebuilding, or to take away the wreck of the reactor, or to build us a new one.It was about a month after the explosion that I renewed my vow to join SOLDIER.I decided that the only way to change the company was to do it from the inside.

Well, friend, it's getting kind of late, and I can hear my bed calling me.We old war horses must keep up our rest, you know.However, if you are interested in hearing more, come back tomorrow.I'll still be here, and I can assure you that there is much more to tell.For instance, how I joined SOLDIER, what I did once I joined, and, most importantly, how Sephiroth became the one-winged angel of death.


	2. The Razor's Edge-Chapter Two

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER TWO

Hey, so you decided to come back; you will find it to be worth your time.The port here is excellent.Now, where was I?Oh, yes, my resolution to join SOLDIER, that's where I was…

Memory is a funny thing.What I mean is that I can remember everything about that day except the town.I can recall exactly the springy feeling under my boots as I strolled through the woods outside of town.I remember the sounds of dripping water from wet leaves; it had rained in the morning.I can still feel the tendrils of spider webs brushing my face and the dappled sunshine leaking through the canopy.I still remember the soreness in my feet as I wore in my brand new black boots; they were waterproofed and durable.However, I have no memories of the town or its people on that day.I know I saw them and talked to them, because I remember that I was weeping as I left the town where I had spent my entire life.

But enough about that.I made good time that first day; by noon I reached the edge of the Gongaga forest, and I could stare out north across grassy fields to the Golden River, which was but a faint glimmering on the distant horizon.Staring at that empty plain, I got a hunch that it would be safer to make a night crossing.My logic was that the sun would be beating down upon me, and should I falter, I would be nothing but a nice, fat meal for whatever scavenger happened along.However, should anything at night attack me, well, I had my sword, and at least I wouldn't be weakened by the sun.Go figure, huh?

Much to my surprise I ended up spending that afternoon rather productively.I filled up my water sacks from some leaves and vines.I also built a few snares and trapped some leafers.For those of you who don't know what a leafer is, it's a rabbit that wears cabbage over it's hide.Weird, huh?Anyways, those little bunnies make a good stew, so I caught a couple, ate my stew, and slept until sunset.I think that I spent the afternoon well; as a result I was rested and energized for the crossing.

The crossing went fairly uneventfully.The only thing of interest that happened was that I slew my first monster.Since it was dark, I never identified it, but I suspect that it was just a typical troll.It was an easy battle; I simply chopped off its head.This battle was significant in two ways.First of all, it showed me that I was an excellent swordsman; I was capable of destroying anything that threatened me.Secondly, this battle taught me that monsters carry Gil and items; I discovered that killing monsters was an excellent source of income.

The next morning found me on the banks of a broad, deep river.As the sun rose, the entire river turned a bright yellow, giving testament to its name as the Golden River.However, I was too perplexed to care for the beauty of the scene as the bright yellow stream cascaded down from the brown, barren hills and wound its way through the emerald, verdant plains until it reached the deep, azure sea.Instead of studying the fiery sunrise, I was using its goldenrod light to examine my map.According to the map, there was supposed to be a ford at the point in the river where I then stood, but there was only deep water and a desert on the far side that most certainly wasn't on my map.

Anyways, to make a very long story not so long, I found the ford and made my way across the Corel River on the northern side of the next set of grasslands, and eventually to the resort town of Costa Del Sol.I have learned that some major changes had taken place.The town of Corel was no more, and its sister city of North Corel was in a slump.A casino was to be built in the middle of that quicksand desert I had skirted.I never learned how that desolate, empty place of shifting sand and dying, desperate creatures came to be.Like I've said before, go figure.

In Costa Del Sol, I used the Gil I had lifted off of monsters to buy a ticket to Junon.The only event of any significance was my run-in with a nasty little guy named the Midgar Zolom.I guess that on that continent, this creature was well known and feared.However, I knew nothing of the eastern continent, so I had no worries other than normal as I began crossing the Great Marshes.

As I trudged through that miserable, damp, bug-infested place, I became aware of a presence tracking me.It was always there, in fact it was so ominous that I never made camp in the three days it took me to cross those terrible swamps.About noon on my second day in the marshes, I began to hear it: a raspy slithering noise, as if ten thousand snakes were chasing me through the marsh.Ever brave, and coldly calculating that I could not outrun the monster, whatever it was, I turned to fight it.

At that moment an enormous serpentine beast reared fifty feet above me.Having no choice but to fight it, I began studying its movements.This is always my first step in any fight; I study my opponent for bad habits and potential weaknesses.I discovered that I could sink my sword through its hide, but it seemed to do little damage.The only way to slay it was to run my sword through the creature's head and destroy its brain.I recall thinking, "I should have just built a raft and sailed to the north coast.Oh well, too late now."

All this went through my head in about a minute.Then I caught a fatal flaw in the serpent's maneuvers: he (maybe it was a she…whatever) kept most of its body close to the ground, only the head end was raised above the ground.Seeing that there was only one thing to do, I jumped on its back and climbed up the creature's neck until I stood on top of its flat, triangular head.This is not as easy as it sounds, not with the lack of handholds and the snake's frantic attempts to shake me off.I actually had to use my sword and my dagger to climb by sticking them into the overgrown garden snake and pulling myself up with them.Finally I stood victorious on top of the mountainous serpent.I swiftly jammed my sword straight down to the hilt.

I was definitely not prepared for what happened next.That idiot of a monster began having death spasms!I nearly got thrown from my perch; now that would be irony.I go out of my way to save my hide from this thing, and then I get killed by its death throes.Sorry, but I'm not into that droll humor, thank you.I held on to the hilt of the Buster Sword for dear life, literally.Finally, ten minutes later, the beast was dead, so I drew my sword from its head and cleaned it off with a leaf, and then I continued my journey.

After another day in the marshes, I reached some pastoral farmland with a chocobo ranch in the middle of it.I told the owner about my run-in with the snake.

"That's amazing!" he said."No one has ever single-handedly slain a Zolom before!You must be nearly as good as Sephiroth, may he protect us!" (Be still my gagging heart.)

"Whoa.So, is it possible to get a ride to Midgar?"

"Not for free.Normally it would cost you 50,000 Gil for a chocobo of your own, but since you've killed a Zolom, I'll sell you a chocobo for only 10,000 Gil."

Needless to say, I took the chocobo, paying for it with the money I took from the Zolom.Two days later, I looked down from a tall hill into a deep valley wherein lay the destination of my travels: Midgar, the city of eternal night.I let the chocobo go and began my descent.I was a little sad since I had grown a fondness for the bird, but there was no place for him in Midgar.On a whim I named the chocobo Cal.I wonder what happened to him.

Oh, but I digress.I never saw the next morning dawn since I was in Midgar when it happened.


	3. The Razor's Edge-Chapter Three

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER THREE

Midgar was the stuff of legends.Of course, now it is but a shadow of what it was when I lived there.Now it is an aging, dying city with no driving force, and even when Cloud was there, the city was in its decline.However, when I first set eyes upon that mystical floating city, it was the capital of the world; everything revolved around Midgar.Yet, many empires have risen and fallen, so what, you ask, was so special about Midgar?

First of all was its location.It sat hundreds of feet in the air, almost as if its residents wanted to transcend the Planet and become gods.

Secondly was its eternal night.Few legends of gods and magicians can beat the engineers who blocked out the night and turned Shinra's capital into its own self-contained universe.

Finally was Midgar's sheer size.In his book, _A Brief History of Shinra_, Reeve states that there were originally eight separate towns in the valley.It was supposedly a verdant, lush valley with a materia mine owned by a very young George Shinra in the very center.One day an engineer working for Mr. Shinra figured out a way to produce power using mako.Shinra marketed this technology to the eight villages, and each village soon had its own mako reactor.After people had flocked to the cities, Shinra had his engineers design a method to bring these new cities together to form one huge megalopolis.It is said that beneath the central pillar of Midgar is still the entrance to the old mines.So, all in all, Midgar was unbelievable.That is why it was the greatest city ever built.

Anyways, I went to Shinra Headquarters, which was a towering monolith in the center of the city.I went up to the reception desk and asked for Sephiroth.Seriously, I did.The receptionist politely told me that Mr. Sephiroth was unable for an autograph, but that I might catch him at a fundraiser for a local charity or something.I told her that, no, I was planning on joining SOLDIER, and she laughed at me.So I drew my sword and got escorted firmly off of the premises. 

And they wouldn't let me back in.

After I sat on the front steps of the Headquarters for a day or so, I decided to go see the city.I was amazed at how lifeless the city was.The only living things were people, dogs, cats, and the occasional rat.There were no parks and very few trees lined the streets.It was almost as if the very city was a wasteland, and the people were thriving in it.

Very soon hunger hit, and very soon after that the realization that I had no means of survival hit. I'm surprised I don't have more bruises.Anyways, I had saved up some Gil from my battles with the wild animals, so I bought a flat in Sector Five.It was a very cozy place, with a living room, a kitchen, separate dining room, two bedrooms (in case I ever had guests), and a large bathroom.All in all, not bad for a monster hunter.

As I was inspecting the flat, I had an epiphany.I could be a professional monster hunter.On top of the Gil I would retrieve from the corpses, I could sell any extra armor they had, and even maybe get commissions.If I worked hard enough, I could even get an appointment with Sephiroth. 

The next day I put an ad in the _Midgar Times_ offering my services to anyone who needed them.I remember that my slogan was very corny.It was something like "Who are you gonna call?Monster Hunters!"That was on a Saturday.The following Monday lady named Elmyra appeared at the door to my flat.I showed her into my office (the converted guest room) and asked her what she needed.

"Well," she began, "my daughter grows flowers in this church down on the surface.Trouble is that some nasty creatures have moved in to the rafters, and I don't like her being alone in there.Would you mind clearing the church of its monsters?"

"No problem," I said."Anything else you need?"

"Just help keep her safe."

"Gotcha.Do you have directions to this church?"

"Actually, it's beneath Sector Five, and it's the only church in the Sector, so…"

"…So I shouldn't have any trouble finding it.Okay, what time would you like me to start?"

"As soon as possible, please."

"Okay," I said as I showed her to the door."I have a few things to take care of, but I should be there in about an hour."

After she left I pulled on my boots, strapped on the Buster Sword, and went for a stroll to Shinra Headquarters.You see, after they started letting me back in the building, I had started to form a habit of stopping by once a day to ask for Sephiroth.This way I figured that word would eventually get around to him.Good plan, huh?

So, after being told that Sephiroth wasn't taking appointments, I took a train to the train station beneath Sector Seven and walked to Sector Five, or beneath it anyway.

Like Elmyra had said, the church wasn't too hard to find.I nonchalantly strolled in and stopped dead in my tracks at what my eyes had found.Standing amidst the flowers and bathed in an almost holy light was the most beautiful woman I had ever gazed upon in all my days.

To try to describe her in words is impossible because her beauty is too great.However, I'll try to sketch you a mental picture.She had long, velvety, auburn hair, and her eyes were like two precious emeralds set in magnificent diamonds.Her soft, pale skin seemed to glow in the light from the hole in the roof. She carried a basket to fill with flowers, and there was a clear piece of materia in her hair.Many people talk about love at first sight, but I have actually experienced it.I felt like my heart was being shattered and rebuilt, and the world without this mysterious flower girl seemed too bleak and stale and dead to survive in.

"Oh, hello," she said in her soft, mellifluous voice."Are you Zack Dannflor?"

"Yes, ma'am, that is my name," I said as I bowed."Are you Aeris?"

She smiled, and that smile made my heart leap."Yes, sir, that is my name," she said, and did a curtsy."Look, if you're going to be my bodyguard, we're going to have to drop all these formalities."

"Wait, bodyguard?Look, I'm just supposed to clear the monsters out of this church.Nobody said anything about being anybody's bodyguard!"

"What, you don't like my company?" she asked as she looked downcast.My entire world seemed to go dark.

"No, it's not that.It's just that I have a business to run, and…"

"Great!Then I can be your secretary!That way you can watch over me, and you'll still get your job done!Besides, your terms of employment were to watch over me, and that's what a bodyguard does, right?"

"Yeah, but I'm not sure that I would be too great of a bodyguard; I'm just a monster hunter."

She shyly smiled at me."Then BE a monster hunter.And…maybe…if you want to…we could go on a date.Then…if you want to…you could be my boyfriend, and then you'd protect me as my boyfriend!"

I was ecstatic."Wait, YOU want ME to be YOUR boyfriend!?!?"

"Well, yes.Is there a problem?"

"No, it's just that I would never in a million years dream of even meeting a woman as beautiful as you, much less actually dating one."

"Good, then pick me up at about eight tonight at my house."

"How do I get there?"

"Just follow the path to the central pillar.My house is right up against it."

"I will gladly be there at eight."

"I look forward to it, Zack."

"As do I, Aeris."

After she left, I let the monsters in the attic of the church know how excited I was to be going out with Aeris.I doubt that they shared my enthusiasm.


	4. The Razor's Edge-Chapter Four

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FOUR

That evening, Aeris and I ate dinner at a fashionable little Sector 7 restaurant named Valabar's.Business had been good over the weekend, and one of my wealthier clients had recommended Valabar's for several reasons.Throughout the duration of my career, I dined there many times, but my most memorable visit was that first one with Aeris.

The restaurant was located on a small side street near Shinra HQ in an upper-class residential area.Shinra VIP homes and such, you know what I'm talking about.The lots surrounding the place had all been cleared, and a garden had been planted there where diners could engage in intimate conversations on warm nights.I'm not talking about one of those puny Shinra flowerbeds; I mean one of those old-fashioned gardens with the high hedges where each table had its own little "room" with hedge walls.

The entrance was located at the end of a long walk lined by the shrubbery.The doors opened into a lobby where a polite waiter would escort the guests to a room appropriate to the size of the party and their dress.For instance, if most of the party was wearing blue, the waiter would show the guests to a room that would set off the hues in the outfits.After the group was seated, the waiter would take the orders, always making suggestions on which salad would be best with which entrée to ensure the best meal possible.Needless to say, Valabar's waiters were superb.After the orders were taken, the guests would be given about ten minutes to talk among themselves before the salads and entrees would begin to arrive.Sometime in between ordering and dessert, Valabar himself would pull up a chair and chat with the guests.I've often wondered if the little bald man had some materia that told him when it was optimal to join in the conversation without interrupting its flow.

After the guests had finished their meals, they could retire to one of the restaurant's many comfortable and softly illuminated parlors.In these rooms, everyone from the president of Shinra to a local chocobo farmer was equal.Monster hunters could schmooze with members of SOLDIER, and Turks would think nothing of talking to Item vendors.If one could get in, that was enough to remove any social barriers.I think that Valabar's was the only place in town that did not seat based on class, only on colors.Of course, to dine at Valabar's, one certainly couldn't be a pauper.

It's really too bad that Valabar's was destroyed along with Sector 7; perhaps, in a cynical sort of way, that is why I detest Mr. Shinra so much.

On that particular evening, Aeris wore a ravishing red dress and I wore a suit with a red shirt, and black tie, jacket, and pants.Just to be me, I also wore my black travel boots (freshly cleaned and shined of course).I had also shaved just before dinner.Funny how one remembers the small things.

The waiter gave us the choice of sitting inside or in the garden.I knew that Aeris would rather be surrounded by the exotic flora of Valabar's garden than be surrounded by stuffy Midgar society, so I chose the garden.We were promptly escorted to an intimate alcove with red roses growing in the greenery.

After the waiter left with our orders, I found myself lost in Aeris' deep green eyes.For a seemingly endless moment we smiled at each other, losing ourselves in one another.Whenever I think back on all my times with Aeris, those couple of quiet minutes in Valabar's garden top the list of my favorite memories.

Suddenly our gaze broke.

"You know, Zack," she said, smiling."You didn't need to bring me to such a fancy restaurant."

"I wanted to take you someplace wonderful."

"But I feel so out of place here, Zack."

"I don't think so.You deserve this place."

"Okay, I'll let you have that one," she said, laughing mellifluously."But what about your funds?" she asked seriously."Won't this break you?"

"Dear, I think the last thing we need to worry about is money.I have all we need and more from the monsters."

"Still, there isn't any reason why we should break the bank every time we go out.How about if we go out of town into the hills for a picnic on our next date, okay?"

"Sounds great.And anyways, on a picnic, we could do things that might be a little awkward here."I smiled lecherously at her while she blushed and giggled.

"Excuse me sir, miss," a short man interrupted to save Aeris from having to reply."I could not help but overhear you mention that you wanted to go picnicking," he said, and winked at me."I know some wonderful locations, would you mind hearing them?"

"By all means," I answered while Aeris smiled sweetly.

"Of course, but may I have the honor of knowing who I am advising?"

"If you will give us the same honor, I am Zack, and the beautiful lady seated across from me is my girlfriend, Aeris."

He flashed a smile as he kissed her hand.My darling blushed some more as he did this."I'm charmed," the little man murmured."I'm pleased to meet you both.As for me, I am Valabar, and I am not lying when I say that I could not be more pleased to have two such wonderful guests dining in my house."

"A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Valabar," Aeris said.

"Please, miss, call me Valabar.Here there are no titles, only names.Now, as to those picnic spots.The best one is a little chilly and somewhat of a climb if you don't have a chocobo.It's on the summit of Mount Mythril, and from that spot you can look out at Fort Condor, the Great Marshes, Midgar, Kalm, Junon, and you can even watch the sun set at sea.Another wonderful spot, if you do not want to go mountain climbing, is the Midgar shore.There are several isolated beaches up there where you can even see the Northern continent on clear days."

"Are there any others, Valabar?" I asked.

"Basically, anything outside the Midgar valley is excellent, but those two spots surpass the rest," he said as he began to leave."Ah, here come your salads.Enjoy, and do not hesitate to call me if you need anything, and remember that my door is always open."

"Thank you, Valabar!" Aeris called out after him.

Shortly after the rotund owner disappeared, a waiter brought the salads, and Aeris and I focused on the greens.However, voices from the wall behind me interrupted my meal.Since Aeris wasn't disturbed by them, I didn't point them out to her.Of course, being me, and sensing something important, I listened in.

"Have you found the specimen?" a quiet, silky voice inquired.

"Yes, professor, we have indeed located the Ancient," a soft, refined voice answered.

"Where is it?"

"She is living beneath Sector 5 near the Central Support, and she spends a lot of her time at an old church down there."I could almost hear the man smile as he said, "Oh, yes, she has been growing flowers."

"How sweet.Now, you miserable excuse for a Turk, I have only one task for you now.Are you listening?"

"I am listening most carefully, professor Hojo."

"Good.You are to retrieve that specimen _alive.It is very delicate, and it is of no use to us dead.We must begin as soon as possible in order to complete the project on time.Do you understand the urgency of this mission, Tseng?"_

"Yes, professor.It is vital to the company that the Ancient be taken into custody alive at once."

"Then leave."

"Yes, professor."

"Oh, and Tseng?"

"Yes?"

"Remember that you are also helping out the rest of civilization as well."

"I understand."

There was silence for a few moments, and then the silky voice, Hojo, began talking again, as if to himself.

"The mess is cleaning up, finally.No one, not Gast, not Lucretia, not Vincent, could stop this, and I will see to it that no one will stop it.Soon, I'll have the specimen, President Shinra will have his promised land, and I will become king of a new race of beings."

Then he chuckled, a sound that could make a troll weep, and he left.

Aeris and I finished our meal without further incident, and all the praise I had heard for Valabar's was confirmed.Since Aeris was tired, we decided not to socialize in the parlors.On the way out, I glanced toward one of those rooms and spotted Sephiroth seated in a large, comfortable-looking chair.I was greatly tempted to go introduce myself.

However, Aeris tugged my arm, and I was reminded that she was what was really important to me, so we left.

He probably wouldn't have wanted to talk to me anyways.

On the way back to Aeris' house, I stopped by the flat and picked up the Buster Sword.I explained that the underneath was getting more and more dangerous by the day, but I had a reason of my own.You see, I hadn't forgotten that conversation I overheard, and there could only be one person who lived near the Central Support in Sector 5 and grew flowers in an abandoned church.Yep, you guessed it, Aeris.I didn't get why they called her an Ancient, or even what an Ancient was, but I knew that my love was in danger, so I got my weapon so I could protect her.Deep down, I'm just a big sweetie.

As we approached her house, I saw a shadow dart behind a bush off the path.

"Aeris," I whispered to her.

"Yes?"

"I'm going to walk in front.When I tell you to, run for your house as fast as possible, okay?"

"Okay."

Aeris was smart enough not to ask questions.I like that in a girl.

As we walked to the spot in the path where I saw the shadow, I turned and walked right at the bush.

"Now!" I yelled, and Aeris ran.After making sure she went, I turned my attention on the would-be attacker.He was tall with dark hair, and he carried a long, thin sword.Sort of a mini-replica of the Masamune, Sephiroth's sword.We faced each other in the path for a moment.Just in case you care, I had my back to Aeris' house so he couldn't run for it.

"You'll pay for that," he said quietly.

"Who are you?" I asked, ignoring his ominous comment.

"My name is Belial.I am a member of SOLDIER, if it matters to you.We require the Ancient to be brought into custody."

"Sorry, Belial, but I can't let you do that."

He shrugged, and attacked.

Now, I'm a fairly decent swordsman, and even then I was one of the best.However, this Belial character really kept me on my toes.It took me a good ten minutes of top swordsmanship to get the Buster Sword's point through his heart.

Belial slumped to the ground, and I checked his pulse to ensure that he was dead.Finding none, I ran to the house to make sure Aeris was safe.She was fine, and we decided to bring in the body to show to the police the next day.

Leaving Aeris in the house with Elmyra, I walked out to the site of the duel, but the body was gone.


End file.
